This Sept. 14, 2009, file photo, shows ESPN broadcaster Jon Gruden before an NFL football game between the New England Patriots and the Buffalo Bills. (Associated Press)

ESPN analyst Jon Gruden offered up his thoughts on the New Orleans Saints during a Wednesday conference call for ESPN’s Monday Night Football broadcast crew.

When asked about his thoughts on the job his friend and Saints coach Sean Payton has done with his team’s offense, Gruden didn’t hold back the praise calling the Saints a “well lubricated machine” and a “factory.”

“I still think the New Orleans Saints are the team to beat in the NFC this year,” Jon Gruden said. “I really like what they’ve done in the offseason and I think [Drew] Brees takes care of the ball and they take care of that turnover margin, I think they’re on their way back to the NFC championship.”

In reference to Payton’s play-calling abilities, Gruden said Payton is among a handful of guys that are outstanding.

“I think Sean has done a tremendous job working with Mickey Loomis. I think that’s the real strength behind the scene is his working relationship with Mickey Loomis. Their ability to develop players, undrafted guys (Pierre Thomas, Lance Moore), late round draft choices like [Marques] Coleston, getting free agents (Drew Brees, Jeremy Shockey, [Darren] Sharper) and making trades (Jonathan Vilma) you name it. They made a lot of tremendous moves and made them work,” Jon Gruden said.

The early favorite for the NFC among the media chatter has, of course, been Michael Vick and his “dream team” with the Philadelphia Eagles. Defending Super Bowl champions Green Bay can’t be excluded from the conversation, of course. But no one is really talking about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They’ve got a young, talented team and a real shot at winning the NFC South.

That being said, it’s entirely possible to see the New Orleans Saints back in the NFC championship game and – depending on how the team performs this season – back in the Super Bowl.

Miami Heat's LeBron James stands with teammates Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade during Game 4 of the NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks. REUTERS/Mike Stone

It seems like a lifetime ago that sports fans were being bombarded with stories and television coverage of the NBA’s arguably most hated team, the Miami Heat.

But with a few months to reflect, Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade spoke to ESPN 540 AM this week about the past season and concluded that although the Heat wanted to hush the critics with a NBA championship, his teammates, including LeBron James and Chris Bosh grew from the overall experience.

“Obviously we went through a lot last year. It was unfair some of the stuff that we had to endure but we grew from it,” he said. “That’s over with. We move on to whenever we play basketball again and we will be a different team.”

Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh made some public relations missteps when James declared last summer that the trio would win “not 2, not 3, not 4, not 5, not 6, not 7″ championships. And to be clear, James himself said he wasn’t blowing smoke with that comment.

I thought with a few months of reflection, Dwyane Wade would say something along the lines of “maybe we were a little cocky.” But maybe the trio doesn’t feel like their grand entrance and grand words opened the door to an avalanche of criticism.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying the Miami Heat stars deserved to get beat over the head with negativity for the entire season, but you would think with a little reflection that perhaps they would take some small part of accountability for the criticism.

In this Dec. 8, 2010, file photo, Florida football coach Urban Meyer talks about his resignation, during a news conference in Gainesville, Fla.

Former Florida Gators football coach Urban Meyer called into ESPN’s Mike and Mike in the Morning show and gave his thoughts on the current college football system and the relationship between the NFL and NCAA in reference to dishing out punishments to “rogue” college football players.

On if the college football system is broken.

Urban Meyer: Well I disagree, I don’t think it’s broke. I still think college football is the greatest of all sports, it’s at an all-time high. All the interest level.. so I would disagree with that it’s broke. When I hear that, matter-of-fact, I get kind of angry when I hear that because so many people put their lives into this great game. I think there certainly needs to be a sincere, hard look at some of issues that have occurred and how to prevent those in the future. I, once again, it’s time tested that this is not the first institution, first organization, to have issues with discipline and guys making poor decisions. I think at the end of the day what needs to be overhauled is not the entire sport, is the risk-reward, the punishment system right now is obviously failing.

On former Ohio State Terrelle Pryor punishment and if the NFL should take some role in supporting NCAA in punishments.

Urban Meyer: “When I was a college football coach, [Roger Goodell] was very interested in supporting college football, supporting the presidents, athletic directors, the institution of college football. And for the NFL to support, if a guy makes a mistake in college and he hurts the university, he won’t just get free access into the NFL and move about your business without some kind of punishment. I agree with the NFL if they do support [the NCAA]. If this goes through and they say, he’s not eligible for the draft and it sounds like he is now, what they can’t do is allow for that to be a safe haven for people that run rogue in college and go about their business and move on to the next level. If college football and the NFL want a close relationship and I think it’s getting closer with coach Goodell, or I mean Roger Goodell, I think you’re going to see how these guys work together.”

Interesting thoughts, but I disagree with Urban Meyer on both parts.

The college football system is broken in so many ways beyond the rule-bending, just ask Boise State about the BCS. Furthermore, the problems of rogue runners/agents isn’t an isolated situation at isolated schools. This has been going on for decades at prominent Division I college football and men’s basketball programs (see SMU football, UNLV men’s basketball, University of Miami football parts I and II, etc…)

To his second point, the NFL’s involvement with the NCAA introduces a very gray area. On the one hand, we’re getting the message that these are student-athletes with the emphasis on the student. This isn’t a minor league farm system for professional sports. But if the NFL and NBA start getting into bed with the NCAA, this sends a very mixed message about amateur sports and its relationship to professional sports leagues. It’s better to keep the two entities separate.

So what’s your take? Do you think the college football system is broken? Do you think the NFL and NBA should get more involved with the NCAA?

Tim Tebow wears the Bible verse Isaiah 40:31 on his eye black for their game against Kentucky at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Kentucky, Saturday, September 26, 2009. (Gary W. Green/Orlando Sentinel/MCT)

Saying – or writing – anything critical about Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow is a sure-fire way to create controversy.

“Others who say I won’t make it are wrong,” Tebow told the Denver Post on Thursday. “They don’t know what I’m capable of and what’s inside me. My family and my friends have been bothered by what’s gone on, and I tell them to pay no attention to it. I’m relying as always on my faith.”

The premise of Doyel’s column centers around one question. What if God’s plan for Tim Tebow is to be a back-up in the NFL and not a starter?

It’s a fair question and one that Doyel – who says he is a church-going man himself – does a good job of explaining, but the final three paragraphs most likely stroke the fire.

“Tebow has been a great billboard for Christianity — just as Muhammad Ali has been a great billboard for Islam, and Sandy Koufax a great billboard for Judaism — but that doesn’t mean he will be rewarded with a starting job in the NFL. Maybe deep inside his heart Tebow knows that, but from the outside it doesn’t look that way. From the outside it looks like Tebow equates his love for God in heaven with tangible rewards here on earth.

And that’s more than wrong.

It’s blasphemy.”

Wow. Blasphemy?

I agreed with about 95 percent of this column, but the final 5 percent is completely whacked.

Maybe Doyel meant to say arrogant, but definitely not blasphemy.

Blasphemy is defined as irreverence toward a deity or deities and, by extension, the use of profanity. Or it can be defined as an irreverent or impious utterance or action concerning God or sacred things.

Tebow’s words might come off as arrogant, but definitely not blasphemous.

Love or hate Tim Tebow, consider this from a different angle. If you have a talent and a dream and you’re being constantly criticized, picked apart and told what you’ll never amount to, then I’d be more concerned if you didn’t respond with a little arrogance.

I mean seriously, is he supposed to say ‘everybody’s right, I suck. let’s pack it up and call it a day?’

If Tim Tebow doesn’t believe in Tim Tebow, then we can be assured nobody else will. After all, who saw him getting drafted in the first round of the NFL?

Every athlete who competes on an elite level has an elevated level of confidence. Whether the source of that confidence be in their own physical talents, a lucky charm or the God they serve, it’s all the same.

I don’t perceive Tim Tebow’s words as suggesting that he is better than Kyle Orton or that he deserves more than someone else. Maybe what he’s really saying is that he doesn’t believe he deserves any less.

It’s fair to argue about the merits of Tim Tebow’s football talent. It’s even fair to argue about how much he talks about his faith.

But calling the application of his faith blasphemy is more than wrong.

U.S. women’s soccer goalie Hope Solo hinted on her twitter account that she might participate in one of the few moments of acceptable adult nakedness, ESPN The Magazine’s “the body” issue.

“Being naked outside is very liberating….at least I hope it will be @ESPN and @ESPNMAG!!! GAMETIME BABY! Ball up!” Solo teased.

ESPN reps would not confirm or deny if Hope Solo participated in one of the photo shoots for the issue, slated for a Oct. 5 release.

Giving interviews and shooting photo spreads is all a part of Solo’s duties in promoting American women’s soccer, of course.

“I flew to LA when most people went home, and I did the media circuit there. I think that’s our responsibility; I need to keep the awareness of the game out there, but I also need to thank our fans,” Hope Solo told Huffington Post in a July 29 interview.

I’m sure many fans will be very appreciative of this nice thank you note.

Given the amount of air-time and ink Tim Tebow receives, it’s easy to forget he’s a rookie back-up for the Denver Broncos – and possibly not the No. 1 back-up.

But alas, his preseason performance in a 24-23 loss to the Dallas Cowboys Monday night, still made him the star of conversations across the sports world. The rookie quarterback was even the cover photo for nfl.com Tuesday morning.

Tim Tebow completed 6 of 7 passes for 91 yards while Broncos back-up Brady Quinn led all three quarterbacks completing 8 of 14 passes for 120 yards and one touchdown.

During the rapid fire question portion of the Mike and Mike in the Morning show, ESPN host Mike Greenberg asked his guests, NFL analysts Cris Carter and Herm Edwards, if Tim Tebow will make all the experts eventually eat all their words. Both Carter and Edwards seem to believe in the former Florida Gators quarterback.

Herm Edwards – “Personally I hope so because I think he’s good for football [with] everything he brings to the table. What he has to do is help himself and become a better player inside the pocket. As ruggard as he is, as tough as he is, the leadership skills he has, you have to play inside the pocket because if you continue to play outside the pocket you’re gonna get hit and these are big guys hitting you defensively. He showed some things last night you liked. He moved the team, he moved the chains, and at times he looked like a rookie. And that’s what he is, a rookie quarterback with not a lot of experience.”

Cris Carter – He will. Eventually. Eventually the cookies are ready.

Carter was referencing an earlier metaphor about Tebow, where he said it’s too early for experts to make declarations about the young quarterback’s career considering he hasn’t been in the “oven” long enough.

So what do you think? Is it too early to make projections about Tim Tebow’s NFL career or have we seen enough to make an accurate judgement.

You could say Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler has been on the receiving end of a perception problem.

He came under an avalanche of criticism earlier this year after he left the NFC championship game with a knee injury, paving the way for Green Bay to win a Super Bowl championship. Some critics continued to challenge his toughness and commitment after spotting Jay Cutler walking around Chicago with his former fiance and MTV reality star Kristin Cavallari.

With the NFL season approaching, ESPN pundits Skip Bayless and Rob Parker debated about what Jay Cutler needs to do to change his perception.

Bayless said Cutler needs to cut his interceptions to single digits and winning an NFC championship would obviously help, but he then slipped in an off color remark about Cutler’s relationship.

“I like the fact that he jettisoned his Hollywood starlet relationship,” Bayless said.

With Parker taking an opposing view to the remark, Bayless added that Jay Cutler’s relationship with Kristin Cavallari wasn’t a “good idea” and “wouldn’t have lasted.”

The dating lives of athletes has become a popular topic in the past few years, particularly if the athlete is dating another celebrity. After all, Kim Kardashian landed a Super Bowl commercial loosely based on her break-up with NFL running back Reggie Bush.

Bayless’ remark about Kristin Cavallari and Jay Cutler’s relationship being a bad idea was a bit harsh, but it does bring up an interesting question. Are celebrity relationships considered bad p.r. for athletes?

CNBC rounded up a list of the top ten athletes and their endorsements and you might find an interesting thread there. Of those 10 athletes, six are married or are involved in serious relationships which have been made public. Of those six, only one is dating an celebrity – Derek Jeter, who is notoriously private.

The other five, LeBron James, Phil Mickelson, Kobe Bryant, Peyton Manning and Jeff Gordon are all married to non celebrities. Most of these guys fiercely guard the privacy of their marriages and relationships. Mickelson’s wife, Amy, became known only after her private fight against breast cancer was made public.

There are, of course, exceptions to the celebrity-dating rule, i.e. Tom Brady and David Beckham.

But in general, it makes you wonder if celebrity-athlete relationships are secretly frowned upon and if so, why?

Former NBA star Jalen Rose, flanked by his attorneys Keith Davidson, left, Victor Morris and James Burdick, right, speaks to the media as he leaves 48th District Court in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, after he is sentenced to 20 days in jail for driving under the influence.(Mandi Wright/Detroit Free Press/MCT)

A Michigan judge showed no leniency for ESPN analyst and retired NBA player Jalen Rose, who was sentenced to 20 days in jail for driving while intoxicated.

Jalen Rose, 38, was arrested for driving under the influence after he crashed his SUV on a snowy road this March. He admitted to drinking six martinis before getting behind the wheel.

“I’m humbled, I’m embarrassed, and I’m very apologetic. I can assure everyone that nothing like this will ever happen again,” Jalen Rose told the court.

The timing of these events couldn’t be worse considering the fact that Jalen Rose opened a charter school in his hometown of Detroit. Aside from the DUI, Rose has a clean driving record and has for the most part been an upstanding citizen and employee.

LeBron James sits with Jim Gray before an interview on ESPN on Thursday, July 8, 2010, in Greenwich, Conn

Memo to David Stern, Billy Hunter, Derek Fisher and the NBA stars – the public needs to hear from you.

If you’re like me, then maybe you’ve noticed the leaders in the labor negotiations have been eerily quiet. Even more peculiar is how silent the NBA stars have been when it comes to fighting against hard salary caps in the 2011 NBA lockout.

Stars like Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning were on the front lines for players in the 1998-99 lockout. But that clearly hasn’t been the case this time around.

We’ve heard a lot of talk about overseas teams the league’s most recognizable players are considering taking their talents to. We’ve heard little to nothing about the issues in the lockout and – most important – where these players stand.

Considering the fact that small businesses and those individuals working for the team are the most negatively impacted by labor unrest, the public has a right to know.

Here’s an excerpt from my upcoming column in the Orlando Sentinel.

NBA stars couldn’t get enough of the limelight this past season. So much so, in fact, that I sometimes wondered if LeBron James and ESPN President George Bodenheimer were secret cousins.

Carmelo Anthony and his wife bombarded the public with their new marriage on a reality show and even had a guest spot on ABC’s popular daytime show, “The View.” Dwight Howard sold us McDonald’s hamburgers and Adidas shoes with his mile-wide grin. Among LeBron James’ many hit-or-miss media moments last season, he even debuted a cartoon series about his life – because we clearly don’t know enough about his world.

Today’s NBA stars are better than anyone else in professional sports when it comes to being vocal about self-promotion and branding. They’re even smart enough to export their brand across the world to places like China and Turkey.

But when it comes to fighting against owners in the 2011 NBA lockout, they’ve been surprisingly quiet.

Penny Hardaway talks to reporters outside the RDV Sportsplex back in 1999.

Former Orlando Magic guard Penny Hardaway made a rare appearance in Orlando earlier this week as he was participating in an AAU camp at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex Tuesday and Wednesday. To note, Hardaway hasn’t been back to the city in almost seven or eight years.

To understand why Penny Hardaway, who turns 40 next week, hasn’t come back to Orlando for a while, you can check out my story on his complicated history with the city.

Hardaway currently co-hosts a radio show called the Bottom Line Sports Show and lives in Memphis. I caught up with the former NBA all-star for a few minutes to get his thoughts on the NBA lockout, NBA players talking about bolting overseas and of course, Dwight Howard.

Q: What’s been your take on the NBA lockout as you’ve watched the events transpire and do you think it will last for a while?

A: My view is just the owners are probably a little upset about what happened last year with the LeBron [James] situation and it was kind of like an eyesore for the league because of how it happened with the decision, LeBron and Chris Bosh going to Miami. But I think it’s gonna last a while because they’re gonna want to get some things straight where players can’t leave a franchise without anything. So I think it’s gonna be a while.

Q: Do you think there will be an All-Star game here in Orlando next year?

A: I hope so, I really want to see it back here. That would be unfortunate if the lockout went all the way through the All-Star weekend and didn’t come through here.

Q: What’s your take on all these guys talking about going overseas? Is that a good look?

A: It’s definitely not a good look. It’s not a good look because it means you’re not caring about what’s going on over here, you’re just gonna go and make money. But hey, that’s the way it works. Every guy has a right to do whatever they want to do and would just say good luck to those guys who are gonna go do that.

Q: Last time we talked you said you wanted a try-out with the Miami Heat, are you still playing?

A: All that is over right now. I’m just at home working with kids.

Q: Everybody here obviously is curious to know what’s going to happen with Dwight Howard. Do you know him or have any contact with him at all?

A: I don’t know him, but he came on my radio show last Tuesday and I really didn’t ask him any tough questions, but I think he’s gonna stay here. Well, I hope he does.

Q: What was the veteran leadership like when you were in the NBA as far as them giving you perspective on fighting the bigger fights for players in the league?

A: I think the veteran guys back then were very strong, they were good leaders, they definitely gave us the pros and cons of every decision that we were gonna make. And the only thing that we did wrong was, that I felt, is that we priced the veterans out of the league. With the minimum being a million dollars and when the economy went bad, a million dollars was a lot of money to a lot of teams and they didn’t want any veterans anymore because of that reason so hopefully they’ll give a better deals for the veterans so the veterans can stay in as long as they want.

Hardaway has some very interesting points about pricing the veterans out of the league and how players potentially bolting overseas isn’t a good look for the NBA players’ fight against owners. Then again, if you believe CBS columnist Gregg Doyel, guys like Dwight Howard are lying about going overseas.

Personally, I don’t think NBA players are lying about the overseas deal. I believe Dwight Howard is serious about considering China and if the money is right, there’s a good chance he’ll go. But what does the “fawning” Orlando media (Doyel’s words) know about that anyway?